The Spanish Armada

The
defeat of
the
“Invinci
I know I have the body of a weak and feeble women, but
I have a heart and stomach of a King!
- Elizabeth I
 The Spanish Armada
On the PowerPoint
• The Spanish Armada was a fleet of ships which fought against England
in 1588. The intention of King Phillip II of Spain was to overthrow the
Queen of England, Elizabeth I.

• The Spanish Armada consisted of 130 ships, including 22 fighting

galleons. Some of the ships were merchant ships converted to fighting
vessels and the ships sailed in a crescent formation, for defence.

• The Armada was commanded by a Duke, Medina Sidonia, who had no

previous sailing experience.

• The English fleet of ships was led by Lord Howard and Sir Francis Drake

• The battle was won by the English

Not on the PowerPoint

• Short story of the Spanish Armada
• Philip's plan was that an armada of 130 ships would sail to the
Netherlands, pick up 30,000 Spanish troops and invade England.
• When Philip's Armada finally set sail. The Armada anchored at Calais,
the English seeing an opportunity used fire ships to scatter the Spanish
fleet and then attack it at the Battle of Grave lines.
• The rest of the story will be told in the PowerPoint
 Why was it caused?
• Religion
Philip II was a strong Catholic. He wanted all countries to be Catholic
the 1559 Elizabethan Religious Settlement angered him greatly.
• Marriage
Philip had been married to Mary Tudor (Elizabeth’s sister). In 1559 he
offered to marry Elizabeth. She shunned his offer and remained single.
So he wanted to take revenge.
• Mary Queen of Scots
Elizabeth’s decision to sign the death warrant of the Catholic Mary
Queen of Scots in 1587 enormously angered Philip. He clearly saw this as
terrible.
• Dutch Revolt
In 1572 Elizabeth secretly help the Dutch rebel against Philip II – she
knew a rebellion in the Netherlands would keep Spain occupied and
prevent them from threatening England. Which made Philip angry.
• Piracy
Spain had colonies in the New World. Some English sailors such as Sir
Francis Drake had been robbing Spanish treasure ships from the New
World (1570s-80s). Elizabeth encouraged this!
 Why Did The Armada Fail?

Leadership

• The death of the Spanish Admiral Santa Cruz had left the Armada under the
command of a seasick prone and very inexperienced seaman called Duke of
Medina Sidonia. He was a good soldier, but terrible sailor.

Design and Weapons

• The Spanish fleet was built mainly for transporting and not fighting.

• The size of the Spanish ships made them easy targets

• The English battery guns could fire longer distances.

Unsuitability of Port

• The storms had prevented the Spanish from returning to Calais to pick up
Parma's soldiers. These soldiers were vital if the invasion was going to succeed.
 Source Questions
Source A

“Though the English ships were smaller and fewer than those
opposed to them, they were better built and better manned…
their skilful use of artillery gave them a great advantage.”
J. Oliphant, A History of England (1920)

How useful is this source in telling us how the english won?

This source is useful in telling us about the english ships, on how the english ships were
better built and better manned compared to the Spanish ships. However this source isn’t
useful in mentioning the english army’s tactics/plan or that Elizabeth was a brave and an
inspirational leader. In addition, it also doesn’t mention about the mistakes of the
Spanish Army and their bad luck. Overall, this source isn’t that useful in telling us about
how actually the english won, it only mentions them having better ships. It doesn't’ t
state about their tactics or the bad luck of the Spaniards.

Source b What impression does Source B give of Elizabeth

“I know I have the body of a
weak and feeble
woman, but I have the heart
and stomach of a
King... I think foul scorn that
Spain should dare
to invade the borders of my
realm. I myself will
be your general, judge and
rewarder of every one
of your virtues in the field.”
Speech by Elizabeth
1 going into the battle?
Source B gives us an impression that Queen
Elizabeth was a brave and courage's ruler. Who
had the mental strength of a great warrior and
“The heart and stomach of a King” and was
always giving her hundred percent to protect her
country. It also suggests that, Elizabeth was
intelligent and quick-witted but equally ruthless
and calculating as any other king, who overcame
her feminine physical weakness.